Share via

Example 2 of <xsl:apply-imports>

  • Article

This example demonstrates how to use <xsl:apply-imports> when you want to add to the functionality of a rule in an imported file, but you don't want to replace the rule entirely. This example uses three main files:

  • The books.xml sample file, slightly altered.

  • The sample.xsl style sheet sets the font as Arial and imports the other style sheet. When a book element is found, the Arial font is applied to the elements in the node. Then the <xsl:apply-imports> tag applies the matching rules in the imported sample-import style sheet.

  • The sample-import.xsl style sheet is the imported style sheet. It provides line breaks, and the formatting for bold, italic, and blue text.

XML File (books.xml)

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<?xml-stylesheet type="text/xsl" href="sample.xsl"?>
<catalog>
   <book id="bk101">
      <title>XML Developer's Guide</title>
      <author>Gambardella, Matthew</author>
      <genre>Computer</genre>
      <price>44.95</price>
      <publish_date>2000-10-01</publish_date>      
      <description>An in-depth look at creating applications with XML.</description>
   </book>
   <book id="bk102">
      <title>Midnight Rain</title>
      <author>Ralls, Kim</author>
      <genre>Fantasy</genre>
      <price>5.95</price>
      <publish_date>2000-12-16</publish_date>
      <description>A former architect battles corporate zombies, an evil sorceress, and her own childhood to become queen of the world.</description>
   </book>
   <book id="bk103">
      <title>Maeve Ascendant</title>
      <author>Corets, Eva</author>
      <genre>Fantasy</genre>
      <price>5.95</price>
      <publish_date>2000-11-17</publish_date>
      <description>After the collapse of a nanotechnology society in England, the young survivors lay the foundation for a new society.</description>
   </book>
   <book id="bk104">
      <title>Oberon's Legacy</title>
      <author>Corets, Eva</author>
      <genre>Fantasy</genre>
      <price>5.95</price>
      <publish_date>2001-03-10</publish_date>
      <description>In post-apocalypse England, the mysterious agent known only as Oberon helps to create a new life for the inhabitants of London. Sequel to Maeve Ascendant.</description>
   </book>
   <book id="bk105">
      <title>The Sundered Grail</title>
      <author>Corets, Eva</author>
      <genre>Fantasy</genre>
      <price>5.95</price>
      <publish_date>2001-09-10</publish_date>
      <description>The two daughters of Maeve, half-sisters, battle one another for control of England. Sequel to Oberon's Legacy.</description>
   </book>
   <book id="bk106">
      <title>Lover Birds</title>
      <author>Randall, Cynthia</author>
      <genre>Romance</genre>
      <price>4.95</price>
      <publish_date>2000-09-02</publish_date>
      <description>When Carla meets Paul at an ornithology conference, tempers fly as feathers get ruffled.</description>
   </book>
   <book id="bk107">
      <title>Splish Splash</title>
      <author>Thurman, Paula</author>
      <genre>Romance</genre>
      <price>4.95</price>
      <publish_date>2000-11-02</publish_date>
      <description>A deep sea diver finds true love twenty thousand leagues beneath the sea.</description>
   </book>
   <book id="bk108">
      <title>Creepy Crawlies</title>
      <author>Knorr, Stefan</author>      
      <genre>Horror</genre>
      <price>4.95</price>
      <publish_date>2000-12-06</publish_date>
      <description>An anthology of horror stories about roaches, centipedes, scorpions  and other insects.</description>
   </book>
   <book id="bk109">
      <title>Paradox Lost</title>
      <author>Kress, Peter</author>
      <genre>Science Fiction</genre>
      <price>6.95</price>
      <publish_date>2000-11-02</publish_date>
      <description>After an inadvertant trip through a Heisenberg Uncertainty Device, James Salway discovers the problems of being quantum.</description>
   </book>
   <book id="bk110">
      <title>Microsoft .NET: The Programming Bible</title>
      <author>O'Brien, Tim</author>
      <genre>Computer</genre>
      <price>36.95</price>
      <publish_date>2000-12-09</publish_date>
      <description>Microsoft's .NET initiative is explored in detail in this deep programmer's reference.</description>
   </book>
   <book id="bk111">
      <title>MSXML3: A Comprehensive Guide</title>
      <author>O'Brien, Tim</author>
      <genre>Computer</genre>
      <price>36.95</price>
      <publish_date>2000-12-01</publish_date>
      <description>The Microsoft MSXML3 parser is covered in detail, with attention to XML DOM interfaces, XSLT processing, SAX and more.</description>
   </book>
   <book id="bk112">
      <title>Visual Studio 7: A Comprehensive Guide</title>
      <author>Galos, Mike</author>
      <genre>Computer</genre>
      <price>49.95</price>
      <publish_date>2001-04-16</publish_date>
      <description>Microsoft Visual Studio 7 is explored in depth, looking at how Visual Basic, Visual C++, C#, and ASP+ are integrated into a comprehensive development environment.</description>
   </book>   
</catalog>

Main XSLT File (sample.xsl)

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<xsl:stylesheet xmlns:xsl="http://www.w3.org/1999/XSL/Transform" version="1.0">
<xsl:import href="sample-import.xsl"/>
<xsl:output method="html"/>

<xsl:template match="book">
   <font face="Arial">
      <xsl:apply-imports/>
   </font>
</xsl:template>

</xsl:stylesheet>

Imported XSLT File (sample-import.xsl)

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<xsl:stylesheet xmlns:xsl="http://www.w3.org/1999/XSL/Transform" version="1.0">

<!-- Override built-in template. -->
<xsl:template match="text()"/>

<xsl:template match="/">
  <html>
    <body>
      <xsl:apply-templates/>
    </body>
  </html>
</xsl:template>

<xsl:template match="book">
  <i>
    <xsl:apply-templates select="title"/>
  </i>
    <xsl:text> By: </xsl:text>
  <xsl:apply-templates select="author"/>
  <br/>
</xsl:template>

<xsl:template match="title">
  <b>
    <xsl:value-of select="."/>
  </b>
</xsl:template>

<xsl:template match="author">
  <font color="blue">
    <xsl:value-of select="."/>
  </font>
</xsl:template>

</xsl:stylesheet>

Output

This is the formatted output:

Formatted output

This is the processor output:

<html>

<body>

<font face="Arial"><i><b>XML Developer's Guide</b></i> By: <font color="blue">Gambardella, Matthew</font><br></font>

<font face="Arial"><i><b>Midnight Rain</b></i> By: <font color="blue">Ralls, Kim</font><br></font>

...

<font face="Arial"><i><b>Visual Studio 7: A Comprehensive Guide</b></i> By: <font color="blue">Galos, Mike</font><br></font>

</body>

</html>

See Also

Reference

<xsl:import> Element